Despite receiving public comments in overwhelming opposition, the Oregon Fish & Wildlife Commission chose to proceed with a proposal by ODFW to kill large numbers of cougars on more than 6,200 square miles of Oregon land using packs of radio-collared hounds and wire neck snares.

The public comments made available at the Commission’s October 9 meeting revealed hundreds of statements urging the Commission to reject the proposal. Likewise, the testimony the Commission heard was heavily weighted against the proposal. Led by The Humane Society of the United States, cougar advocates argued that killing cougars to provide more mule deer for hunters to shoot is not supported by the best available science, and that cougar-human conflicts are actually made worse by increased hunting pressures.

Scott Beckstead, senior Oregon state director for The HSUS, said: “Oregonians made their voice heard loud and clear: we want our native lions protected and cherished, not exterminated like vermin in ‘target zones’ so there are more deer for sport hunters to shoot. The Commission ignored the wishes of the overwhelming majority of Oregonians who took the time to comment in opposition to the target zone proposal, instead embracing a cruel, archaic and scientifically suspect view of wildlife management that is the exact opposite of how most Oregonians feel about the wildlife in our state.”